"While penicillin cure men, wine makes them happy." The scientist Alexander Fleming highlighted the benefits of a good stock at the beginning of the twentieth century, just at the same time when Madrid was brewing in the birth of a winery that would become over the years a place of worship. born in 1922 and just turned 90 years that has gradually grown thanks to its continuous transformation. The property has experienced three stages corresponding to the passage of three generations. If a bar over Moncloa neighborhood of the capital, the founder's son, Pedro Santa Cecilia, in the sixties left loose sales and prompted a major change, which turned the business into a Self Service ("possibly the first Spain specialized, "says Pedro). In the late nineties, with the entry of the children, included the sale of gourmet products and posted online. Through the Internet, the owners keep their customers aware about travel, wine tasting, food pairing and harmony courses The last two stages, during which the number of customers has grown substantially, have been instrumental in its momentum. From being a place where neighbors came mainly in the area, it became a stop on the capital and to be recognized in the rest of Spain. His clientele unites individuals and restaurateurs who, since 2000, can join a club Customers who boasts over 19,000 members. Among the most frequent, the owners stand to the Spanish ambassadors. "Spanish wines are often carried their cities," says the heiress Mayte. Santa Cecilia sounds harder outside Madrid after starting the online sale, which led to a foray into the digital world that has not stopped: have profiles on Facebook and Twitter, and mobile applications. In them, the owners keep their customers abreast on organized trips to wineries and wine tasting, food pairing and harmony courses. With two stores in the capital, Santa Cecilia is ready to explore other countries Among the more than 5,000 references that sells today's offer includes wine and liquor cellar over 20 countries. Ribera, Rioja Rueda or remain the most popular denominations of origin, although the client requests have diversified in recent years. "Now the public is more open and likes to try and discover things," says Peter. The price range is very wide: you can buy wine from the typical battle of one euro to a 1989 Chateau Petrus French brand whose label 5191 euros. In the seventies, with the launch of the self, Pedro Santa Cecilia also opted for a bigger change-no-quarter, and to present the wine in a way that is widespread today, though I was very original. "I thought the wine had to lie and should be labeled," says his daughter while Mayte adds that "he designed the cabinet to put the bottles and at first even saw people taking steps to copy". It was also the first place to have a venenciador Madrid, a professional who is responsible for serving wine by a glass at the end of a long ridge whose tradition was born in Jerez de la Frontera. With two stores in Madrid, Santa Cecilia is ready to explore other countries. "Crossing the Pyrenees, slowly but surely, is our purpose," said Peter proudly.

Opportunity to change model This season, the bulk began with a price of € 0.40 liter to pursue a rise that is expected to exceed $ 0.50. With these prices, the sector has questions about the future of exports. For the director of Observarorio Spanish Wine Market, Rafael del Rey, this change in the markets could be an opportunity to bet on sector changes to other export policy based on higher prices for bulk. In the agricultural sector, the market situation has resulted in the latest campaign in a rise in grape prices on bulk-producing areas such as Castilla-La Mancha (EUR 0.12 per kilogram in 2011 to 0.30 euros this year). Given these prices, some growers who were about to cease production for further arguments found in the activity. WINE BARREL / WINE BARRELS / OAK BARREL / OAK BARRELSBARRICAS / BARRILES DE ROBLE / BARRICAS DE MADERA EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL

The European Commission is to change the current system in the market grower. The most important change is that to start a new plantation, but will require administrative approval. Currently, to plant a vineyard area, you must have the copyright, either because they own their surfaces or by buying allowances on the market at prices that ranged from 3,000 to 15,000 euros per hectare. The EU position is radically rejected by all Spanish agricultural organizations, the regulatory boards and wine by the Ministry of Agriculture. The new system would end the business of thousands of growers, who obtained significant benefits by selling rights. The aim was to control the production areas to avoid increases in supply and surpluses.

The best wines of the campaign, appellations of origin, the most recognized companies. All information related to the wine industry is now available in the Yearbook of Wines, published by Editions THE COUNTRY. This volume of 350 pages, takes the pulse of the industry with reviews of wineries and tasting wines market players that year. In this issue and adopts the generally accepted point rating and worldwide and graded exclusively wines obtained from 80 to 100 points becoming clearer assessment of the taste panel. Also, there are about 4,000 wineries referenced with the basic information of each denomination of origin where these elaborate, making the Yearbook of Wines a fundamental tool for professionals and for any keen interest in the acquisition and query wines. The honor roll of the 62 best wines tasted, the list of wines that offer the best value of the year, rates by brand, winery and punctuation serve as a barometer for quick recognition of the products manufactured and wineries . This publication includes all wineries that produce covered by a designation of origin and some that do not, should appear outlined by the category of their wines. These may be accompanied by a comment in which work is valued overall winery and the wines most striking and unique that has estimated the Tasting Committee of this publication. WINE BARREL / WINE BARRELS / OAK BARREL / OAK BARRELSBARRICAS / BARRILES DE ROBLE / BARRICAS DE MADERA EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL

txacoli has garnered a total of 2,268,710 liters in production of 2012, similar to the previous year, although it has led to an increase in the number of hectares devoted to vintage. The Provincial Director of Agriculture and Rural Development, Koldo Lizarralde, the president of the PDO Getariako Txakolina, Jose Ignacio Manterola, and Secretary of the same, Ruth Porter, have been responsible for presenting the new season this morning in San Sebastián , which is preceded by a crop "very good" because of the large number of hours of sunshine in summer. Manterola broth has qualified this year as "fruity" with a touch of acidity and dyes "green-straw" and a slightly higher graduation last year, placed around 11 or 11.5 %. The Denomination of Origin this year includes a new winery in Getaria at 26 existing, 27 production jobs that are located, in addition to own Getaria (12), in the towns of Gipuzkoa Zarautz (7), AIA (2 ), Mondragon (1), Deba (1), Hondarribia (1), Mutriku (1), Olaberria (1) and Oñati (1), some of which are open to the public. "Ondarribi zuri" and "Ondarribi beltza" are the grapes that wineries are mostly working to develop its white wines, which account for 97% of the total, and the reds and pinks, with production "anecdotal" 3% -, Mozo has pointed out that although the regulations supports "other varieties". The main market for this remains txakoli Gipuzkoa, which accounts for 75-80% of the market, followed by the rest of the Basque Country with 10%, other regions, mainly Madrid and Barcelona, ​​with another 10%, and exports abroad, which hosts 5.6% of total sales. The objectives of this 2013 that percentage includes expanding overseas market, which is mainly concentrated in EU countries such as France, Holland, Belgium, Germany and the UK, as well as in the U.S., thanks in part to the "Feast of Txakoli "a Basque chef held annually in the city of New York. However, Porter has acknowledged that there is still "much to do" in Gipuzkoa, where consumption occurs mostly on the coast, but not found "widespread" within the province. He also said that the area has "everything" necessary for "wine tourism", given that there are several wineries available to be viewed, in that, while direct sales can "not important", "gives to know "the sector, the tourist has in these visits the opportunity to talk" with the one in the vineyard, which produces the txakoli and with selling ", which makes the visitor will be" impressed ". This new crop of 2012 will be presented this Thursday in Getaria, on the occasion of the feast of San Anton, being tasted in 2100 and 800 bottles of product pintxos, prepared by several local bars. In addition, the PDO shared his prize "Mahasti Jaun" ("Lord of the grape"), which in this 2013 will go to the brothers and Pedro Arregi Andoni and Elkano Fishermen's Association, all from Getaria. WINE BARREL / WINE BARRELS / OAK BARREL / OAK BARRELSBARRICAS / BARRILES DE ROBLE / BARRICAS DE MADERA EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL

Ricardo Sanabia wine tasting takes fifteen years. What started as a hobby has become his profession. This Madrid was yesterday one of 45 semifinalists for the prices , the contest to pick the best Sommelier in Spain. The event was held yesterday at the Hotel Puerta America. Sanabia has performed three times and has never made it through to the final stage, this gives an idea of ​​how difficult the exam. It is the 22nd edition of this event and therefore assured participants at the exit, "each year is harder." Only nine achieved last through to the final to be held in June in Madrid. The test seems simple but nerves show that it is not so. Applicants sniff four wines. The winemaker Elena Adell details its features and they write them down. Have ten minutes to memorize and return to the classroom. Awaits examination in a black cup, so that not even the color can give them clues. Must guess the smell alone which of the four wines is and write your description in a folio. Rioja reds are made specifically for this contest. The minute wait before facing the very short period are the contestants. The hotel corridors resembled those of a school before the end of course exam. "The most important thing is to let yourself be guided by your first impression," says Marta Burgos, avulense participating in the competition for the first time. "It is very difficult because the four are very similar," says Javier Moreno, a Segovia about to face his third attempt. "We must be guided by the first impression," says one participant As students review the notes, the 2002 winner and juror today, , smiling walks. This restoration entrepreneur, wine tasting for 25 years. "When you are doing the test does not look at them, because I feel your nerves," he admits. Field believes that we need to maintain the tradition of "something as our" like wine among new generations. When facing a black cup while the jury explains the development of the test, some kept staring, others frolic with the pen. "Nothing chops", specify the winemakers. The test begins and most sniffs several times before starting writing. They have four minutes to show what they know. After still have a theoretical test enology ten minutes. Alejandro Rodriguez, Madrid Restaurant Ramon Freixa , became the outstanding student. This participant won the award for best sommelier of the call. Along with his eight companions will have to refine his nose within six months to prove that is gold. WINE BARREL / WINE BARRELS / OAK BARREL / OAK BARRELSBARRICAS / BARRILES DE ROBLE / BARRICAS DE MADERA EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL

It looks good terroir to produce a high quality wine on the outskirts of Madrid. A group of soil scientists, experts in soil types and conditions, began to explore the surroundings of the capital until they came to Trujillo. "They found a spot less than expected slate in Extremadura" says Cristina Rojas, Sales Manager Speaks. Although soil that discovery dates from 1998, wine barrel not started selling wines until 2007, "we were tuning" from its stand clear on Enofusión. The wine side of Madrid Fusion gastronomic event, which celebrates its third edition, has attracted a dozen wineries and more than a hundred appellations of origin to the appointment. Many of them are small, but with excellent wines. Some had the courage to propose group of soil scientists to host Trujillo Speaks Bodegas. "We did not want to include us in any denomination of origin, so that the ground seemed perfect Extremadura. We work six grape varieties and make limited editions, "says Rojas. The bottles are numbered vintages, usually do two a year, and each can be between 40,000 and 70,000 bottles. The result is as fine wines Speaks number 10. wine barrels is not a winery. Nor wine. This is a new tool. "Our goal is to connect to small wineries with the end customer. So we've assembled a continuous tasting center, "explains Alejandro Landete, model ideologue. He opened three months ago and already have on their shelves more than 250 wines. "In the store (Goya, 32, Madrid) and tastings can choose the one you like bottle. The advantage for the customer and the retailer is very cheap, the hold, in exchange, you get only a window, "he adds. Producers pay a fee, monthly or yearly, which includes promotion and is not limited to wine, but includes oils and gourmet products such as smoked mackerel with truffle juice. His idea has earned him the Innovation Award in MF13, the second award in its short existence. "It is a unique model in the world. We were brave, risky and we're happy, "he concludes. The quality of oak barrels is clear. The winery, founded in 1945 by Jose Maria Vaquer in Bats, La Mancha Catalan grape production destined to other wine regions. "There were no projects originating" qualifies Michelangelo Vaquer, third generation of winemakers. The essence of the cellar is kept, the spoken language changes. So, have updated the vermouth (to make no mistake, a vermouth is just a Martini). "Grandpa taught us how to do it, that has not changed. Our work has been to bottle it, transmit ritual and modernize "says Vaquer. So, have bottled the mixture of absinthe in a contemporary package, and have included the recipe (orange soda and ice) and the recommended time to take: from 12 to 15. Currently distributed in over 50 cities worldwide, including London and New York, where triumphs vermouth.

The Périgord (in southwestern France) is a country habitable castles, rivers generous and meticulously exploited terroir. But its crown jewel is hidden and unnoticed footprint Montaigne, whose ancient heritage hidden in the municipality of Saint-Michel, which bears his name. Javier Belloso Michel de Montaigne (1533 - 1592), in effect, is an unusual product of this land so propitious to the finest grapes. Locked in his tower wrote the famous Essays and changed the course of world literature. He often cited alongside Shakespeare, Cervantes, Goethe, and is, in fact, that now classic European arouse more admiration and interest among discerning readers and writers themselves. "Happy as God in France" is a German saying that seems perfectly suited to this beautiful country. Alone in his tower, the old essayist opened new paths to human sensibility. It was, in its way, a little god of joy morigerada, but steady, busy only in writing and reading, but not forgetting the writing space with mule rides, where among discomforts, his prose is peppered auroral. Top in beams The first surprise of the place is the lack of interest appears to raise from the point of view of tourism. Saint-Michel-de-Montaigne is a village of three hundred inhabitants secret, quiet as a divine nap, and the old castle of Montaigne is camouflaged behind a collection of old cedars. Are legendary difficulties finding this bucolic and peaceful place (as has George Edwards Montaigne's death and I can confirm to the letter). To be a glory of France, the essayist gets a little lackadaisical attention by the authorities. Vineyards near the village. / Philippe Roy The history of the fortress dates back to the fifteenth century. In 1477, Ramon Eyquem-writer-great-grandfather, who was a merchant of Bordeaux, bought the estate, becoming the first de Montaigne. The domain belonged to the family until 1811. In 1860 he bought Pierre Magne, Minister of Finance of Napoleon III, who wanted to give his son. Twenty years later, in 1885, a fire destroyed most of the castle, which was quickly rebuilt the following year. The current owner was Madame Mähler Besse, who died last year. Only the tower of Montaigne, the carrier estimated times where this happened, it has steadfastly maintained original. Part of the building is now open to visitors. All that remains of the time are a pair of saddles and famous quotations of Greek and Latin maxims that the writer did enroll in the rafters of his library (starting with the significant Homo sum, humani nihil a me fucking alienum of Terence, that is, Man I am and nothing human is alien to me). We will stay in the only place available, the Relais de la Renaissance. It is a charming rural apartments house. The trendy and two Germans, Inge von der Ley and Anton Kellner. They make an odd couple. Inge is blonde, attentive and very restful insight. Anton, Tony, as he prefers to call it-is a big Bavarian, smiling and very skilled in the secrets of gardening. Actually, she works for the Minister of Education Minister of Mali, which is why the couple spends five months a year in Africa. That allows them to enjoy seven months off, which they use to exploit the relay apartments. The winery Montaigne. / JDS Finish the day fade sensations of the visit. As solid memories, a few liters of wine country, the appellation Côtes de Bergerac Sec Montravel and all these vineyards we have seen, crowned by castles, bear fruit, and it is excellent. The landscape of the Dordogne is monotonically fruitful. Strains arranged in endless rows colonize the slopes of the small hills and plains all available. The different properties are called wine châteaux, whether or not they are watched by some impressive battlements. It is customary in the header of each row of vines planted a rosebush. Dinner should be at the Auberge de la Tour, the only restaurant in town. It promises cuisine du terroir and campagnarde ambiance, and really is true, as can be seen instantly right from the first spoonful of soup-House, which has a thick consistency and varied, perfectly reasonable. The traveler-I promise there will leave satisfied with the mood and the complete works of Montaigne under his arm. As he wrote, "no pleasure is totally delightful if not reported, and no absolute delight if disclosed." "Joan is the author of Viatge Garí meu country pel (editorial 3i4).

They are crazy. They argue that wine is more than just a red liquid, silky and shiny that comes once a year for a bunch of grapes. And act accordingly. They are extremists. No step back. They maintain that wine is a miracle, an essential part of our culture, and persist in that each of its bottles encloses the mystery of a land and unique grapes, a light, aromas, inimitable wildlife, tradition and history unrepeatable. That is a link that connects us with the Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans. With the Cistercian monasteries, in the nineteenth sophisticated Alava Medoc. Centuries of previous natural viticulture to tractors, herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers. A fashion. And marketing. Trades that feeds and tools that today seem outdated and they considered current. For these fools, the wine must be food, health, magic and pleasure. Excellence. The reflection of a country. A way of life that is being lost and trying to recover. A summary packaging of our hallmarks. So you want to sell the planet. Because wine, along with his romantic side, that inexorably attracted to German financial illustrated Dominik Huber to leave everything, change track and come to produce great wines at Priory just 30 years and one hand back and another forward, is also a business worth 200,000 million euros. A crimson gold mine offering unique and unrepeatable landscapes for tourism supercalidad to face the times of crisis. Crazy people say that to succeed you have to fill each bottle of quality, personality and differenceIn Spain they drink less wine than ever, 17 liters per capita.Half that of France or ItalyThese artists came demonstrate that things are not as they were, we have come They fight for that model. For the cult of the vineyard. For the return to the primitive. With little money and a lot of ambition. And often face the incomprehension of his peers and neighbors who never understood his philosophy and branded them eccentrics. And with the public, of which they have never received one euro because for them modernize the wine sector supposed to start, machining, standardize and focus on vulgarity. And lose your soul. That's not the road map of fools. That is not going anywhere. Spain, the first vineyard in the world by extension, with more variety and tradition than any other, sold, however, their bottles in international markets at a price much lower than their secular rivals Old World (France and Italy) and while, can not compete with the New World (Australia, Chile, Argentina, New Zealand, South Africa) in the lower segments. Neither old nor new. Neither good nor bad. We are invisible. And that is perceptible in any big wine store in London or New York, where our brands are absent and have to go to the neighborhood grocery stores to finally encounter red cheap and mediocre cava made ​​in Spain. Such lack of prestige is also evident on the shelves of the Duties of half the world's airports, where one finds the most obvious wines, stale, outdated and poorly labeled Spanish wine sector against the glamorous French, Italian sympathy and cool touch of the new players. That image is projected on the information highways of the world: low price, low image and little hook. Topics to be banished. The global industry popes define our vineyard as a "diamond in the rough that is ignored almost everything and can give surprises." It seems that we have not yet heard. In June I attended an event organized in Boston by Wine Spectator, one of the bibles of the industry overall, which met at the Marriott Copley to 200 of the best wineries in a score of countries willing to show and to taste their products a thousand fans who had paid $ 200 to attend the event. A unique opportunity to be released in the U.S., making it sniff competition and interact and meet consumer tastes. However, the impression he gave in Boston Spanish wine was painful. Our representation was a level below that of France, Italy, Argentina or Australia. Very few owners of Spanish wineries had deigned to move to the United States and had left their business stands in the hands of the majority of the time it had been in Spain, did not know the hold that represent or speak Spanish. That night, one of the few winemakers in attendance, Jose Manuel Ortega, a former banker with hyperactive wine projects in Argentina, Chile and Ribera del Duero, which runs hundreds of thousands of miles in coach with his wines under his arm and has ensured that The New York Times exalt its Malbec wines, gave me some key Spanish fiasco: "Each denomination strip on your own and no outside an overall picture of Spanish wines or even what is Spain, not there are good Spanish restaurants in the world to serve as a showcase for our products, as do the Italians have known not encourage wine tourism in Napa (California) is a transfer of nine million people, and in Argentina, about two million, they spend and exert word of mouth, and, above all, our business has been minimal effort: people of Spanish wine is not moving. " Beside him, another man in the sector, Gonzalo Verdera, a Harvard-trained economist Todovino driver, one of the most active clubs in the modern sector in our country (created under the goal of being the "sommelier personal" each of its customers), completed the thought of José Manuel Ortega: "We have no image.'ve sold much outside, but we managed to create brand-country. global brands do not have in size and reputation. We created great wines, but not has created a business structure management, communication and marketing around them. Towards the future must concentrate on the middle class, making $ 10 wines of good quality and with a clean and clear. And above all, there that define the image of Spain that do not fully realize. " Faced with this gray perspective, Fools say the key to success is to fill each bottle of quality, personality and difference. And learn to sell. Something we've never made it past the bulk historically nameless we sent to Europe to grade, color, body and taste their wines in exchange for a few crumbs. Just as we do with the olive oil, we give to bottle and market the Italians, who sell at very high prices on new and sophisticated palate boutiques in New York or Tokyo. The lunatics are to be noted. They claim the same. He sums Benjamin Romeo, a magician and wine business cachaça a gardener who, from scratch, has succeeded in developing in San Vicente de la Sonsierra some of the larger (and expensive) wines of La Rioja, as we stroll through the Andres vineyard inherited from his father and the starting point for 15 years of your project. Today exports 90% of its production. "Faced with globalization, our defense is quality, and that quality in Spain part of the tradition, takes the best of the heritage of our ancestors and develops and updates. Everyone knows that the Chinese can buy the best barrels French and plant the best varieties, but I can not carry this clay is, the fog, the Ebro, the Toloño Mountains. It belongs to us. And is our best marketing. "In his new winery in San Vicente, Benjamin has installed a bunch of cameras pointing in the direction of his vineyard and his people, "and maybe when I'm in Japan, I take the tablet, connect the cameras by remote control and teach them how it is, our grapes, the sky, the castle, where we came from and what the project. And understand. The Japanese are very sensitive to the pure: eat raw fish. " Benjamin Romeo's opinion is shared by one of the most powerful men (and feared) of Spanish wine, Jorge Ordonez, founder of Fine Estates from Spain, a company based in Massachusetts that channels our best wines to the United States. Ordonez is also a seasoned tastemaker, a trendsetter, able to define how the wines should be to conquer the American critics. This was done with different brands emerged from his baton in forgotten corners of our country by the great Rioja wine monopolized for decades, as Toro, Jumilla or Campo de Borja: "The key to a good wine is the grape, and if the have, have good wine for decades. During years we started the best we had, our grape immemorial, foreign varieties and planted it seemed that was what the market asked. we get it wrong. Such wines generalist international grapes, make cheaper and better sell the New World through their corporations. The key to selling in North America is our diversity of grapes, landscapes and designations of origin (we have 70). For many consumers the New World are newcomers; know not put yourself on the map, and you have to put teaching, doing thousands of kilometers, scratch your pocket and explain to the distributors, store owners, critics, which took 3,000 years in this. And that the best tempranillo, grenache and carignan are here.'s what we presume. And then, quality, cleanliness, the best health checks, something we have not always done because there were selling in bulk and worth everything. " Quality is another key to success of wine with personality. This is confirmed in one sentence the old Isacín Muga, listisimo venerable winery president Haro's namesake: "When you cheat client only once." The lunatics have returned to their roots. They are children and grandchildren of winemakers. They take care of their old vines as Japanese gardens where each strain has a name and is grown with mime hands of a bonsai. "How will I go, who then takes care of the vineyards? I do everything from plowing to prune, pick and bottle," says his barber's razor humor Emilio Rojo, an engineer who in 1986 broke with the capital and again Arnoia (Ourense), to the lands of their parents, to start a small vineyard ribeiro the best in history, of which only 5,000 bottles produced and the powerful are raffled. "You're in the vineyard all day, you know her as a daughter and interpret each year in a different way," notes Abel Mendoza, bearded, wise and crafty, one of the largest and honest craftsmen Rioja wine, a peculiar type and seconded by Maite always endearing, his wife, a exazafata that forced him to wear a new shirt before the visit of journalists. With the couple visited their vineyards Marrarte: "The winemaker is a simple manager what land he is giving, each vintage is a surprise. Every year is unpredictable. If it rains or it's hot, it gives you a different result. No repeat . Interpret. I never make a wine like another. This is an official sense. From long view. If you keep the environment, if you put junk, leave a better future to come. You have to respect the earth . Thinking long term, because short agobias you mess with the mortgage and a tractor and do a wine vulgar. And that's happening to people here: the great wineries grapes bad pay [one-tenth that ten years], ignores the farmer. No requirement. chance and I jumped out of the family business of growing and selling grapes to make my wine, bottle it and label it. 'Where does this', I said. now live it, I paid vacation and I have friends all over the world. And I want more. A bottle of wine has to be like a book to tell you in a few minutes the context, history, landscape, whodunit. Otherwise is boring. Failure inspires you, not buy it again. " Madmen reject chemistry. Blockbusters. Lush plantations. Looking imperfection with guts. Use weapons of ecology and biodynamics. Aran with mules. Credited with cow poop. Hand pruned. They look at the sky. Prove grapes. They are guided by the movement of the stars. No hurry. They are unwilling to produce more to fill their pockets and ruin your future. Not occur to them to plant varieties and clones of rapid growth to line in the shortest time possible. That was the mistake of many wineries. Especially in the Ribera del Duero: double, triple, quadruple production during the bubble. "As one Moroccan who work with us, 'the rush kills, friend," said Carles Ortiz, who produced with his partner, Esther Nin, some of the new jewelry of the Priory. We climbed beside the slopes of Mas d'en Casa d'Or, its Paleolithic Porrera vineyards. We sense the valley floor we hit it Ebro in the Rioja with Benjamin and Abel. In this vineyard Carles and Esther, chemistry does not fit. His remedies against parasites and pests are based tisanes rainwater, chamomile, horsetail and dandelion. Just what is involved. This brings unparalleled wines. Esther is also winemaker at Clos Erasmus, one of the most legendary and sought after wines from that area. Carles pulling his mule and Esther carries in his chest to Roger, their son. Among the strains grow flowers, pears and quinces. Esther takes fruits, crushed and put in the baby's lips. "Roger will grow in the vineyard not have a caretaker, we preferred to hire someone else to grow it. Currently it seems more important." Esther and Carles are part of the second generation of hippies of the Priory. The first came here in the early eighties and was formed by Rene Barbier, Alvaro Palacios, José Luis Pérez, Carles Pastrana and Daphne Glorian. The five brought fame to this region and jumped banking rankings of world wine guru, Bob Parker. This second generation wants to go further and provide more natural, the product freshness and ecology. They are friends. We demonstrate during a dinner in which two competitors of the new Priory, Esther and Dominik Huber, share wine, laughter and food service. Not everything is for sale. Things have changed. Madmen winery no longer teach, teach the vineyard. Among strains in the farm Turo d'en Mota, in Sant Sadurní, breakfast with cousins ​​and Josep Mata Ton, inheritors of cava Recaredo firm, who have conquered the critics with a sparkling American giver name this estate, costs 90 euros on the market and that Parker scored 96 points, never seen in the cellar. There is no better scenario for them that these strains ecological 1940. Materialize the earth cult. Gone are the days of pitch. Wine show. Joined speculation and wine-estate bubble. There are hundreds of wineries for sale. Wine filled sac. Clone with other wineries for sale full of expensive wine and mediocre end. The pendulum has moved. It's not about making great wines from 100 euros, but great wines of 10 that allow you to make great wines limited edition of 100. Is envite: worthy wines at reasonable prices. Different and simple. Fresh and lighter. Risky. With less wood. To drink or to satisfy critics (at least, so they say). This is wits. To woo a new generation of consumers now addicted to beer and spirits high ranking. In Spain they drink less wine than ever. Seventeen liters per capita. Half that of Italy or France. Half that in 2000. The fourth of 50 years ago. Madmen know the vineyard. And they are determined to reach as many people as possible, and reveal the secrets of this gravel, lime or clay of small grapes, gathered and concentrated in compact clusters. Taken to the extreme. It is his obsession. They are unwilling to invest in bricks or wineries signed by star architects, have begun to borrow, in garages, on floors, in warehouses, with a couple of barrels, in an old printing press, as Laurent Corrio and Irene Alemany, a couple who met while studying oenology in Burgundy and since 1999 are revolutionizing Penedes reds even come to moonlighting to round the meager family budget. They do not want houses with coats of arms, but made with the finest vineyards forgotten. Territories covered with vines for centuries one day and they abused and neglected located, raised and replanted with grapes and then await original nature do the rest. It may take 35 years until they give a great wine. Patience is the first virtue that should adorn the winemaker. As said the Baroness Rothschild, one of the legendary names of French wine: "Once you've been 300 years in this, and everything is shot." "We have taken decades to learn that the wine is made ​​in the vineyard and in the winery," was the first thing I said in Boston Juan Muga, 38, third generation Mugas front Rioja brand to which named his surname. Muga, one of the traditional Rioja wineries, producing two million bottles a year, has not succumbed to the temptation to produce industrially. It has preferred to invest and dig in the vineyard. And give a twist to the prestige of its procedures. Since manufacturing its own oak barrels, a trade that was missing, until all wood aging and control every grape that comes into your cellar. The result is a quality wine, midway of modernity and tradition, which transmitted to the world through exporting million bottles each year. As gray suit, good English, as an appendix a drink from his hand, Juan Muga was busy in our meeting in Boston explain their project to the American fans. The same was done in the previous days in Chicago, Las Vegas and Austin, and before going to Brazil in a continuous pilgrimage trade. "In Texas I was in a big supermarket, the Central Market, people with your shopping and I served and speaking of Rioja wine. In Spain not have done, but in America ... must lose the shame us we exported the 30% two years ago and now we are at 50%. need to travel, test, learn, compare, learn. Just what we've never done. " Madmen wine are clear that while acting locally, its field must be global. They are willing to go further with that considered the best wine of our history. They know that the key is to convey a message in each bottle. Being a locomotive picture. Pull the rest of the industry (as they do in Bordeaux's five most legendary brands in Italy or supertoscanos who wrap themselves in the popular imagination worldwide to thousands of French and Italian wineries humbler and much worse) and show a way: things can make a more clean, original and natural. Respecting the earth. And succeed. There are words Numanthia, one of the wineries born in the late nineties with that perspective Toro personality and quality Eguren family hands, was acquired in February 2008 by the LVMH Group, the global luxury aircraft carrier, by 36 million euros. It was the consecration of a way to make things right. In the same direction, Vega Sicilia, the evergreen myth of Spanish wine, has allied with the Rothschild family, the nobility of Bordeaux, to acquire good vineyards in La Rioja at whatever cost to hoard more than 100 hectares. With these great Rioja wines develop over the next decade. Both financial transactions are a vote of confidence in our land. What is the capital of Spanish wine. Insane So treat the earth as a living being. The listen and whisper. Each strain is an individual. Each bottle, a love story. So Telmo Rodríguez, one of these processors sometimes misunderstood and dismissed as eccentric, balanced precariously on the steep terraces of the vineyard The Falcoeira, near Santa Cruz, in the province of Ourense, on Bibei river, a solitary spot unique, with oaks, fruit trees, ferns and granite walls, boars and birds, a biblical seduction, stir hypnotized mane and mutters: "Now I have put all this beauty in a bottle of wine." That's the secret. The summary of his philosophy. His dream for two decades. Never has dismounted from his principles. Telmo met 15 years ago. And it has not changed a comma philosophy with which wine was launched into the ring in the mid-nineties with the aim of recovering unique vineyards in different regions of Spain, abandoned or crushed by modernity, give them back the way they were a century ago using viticultural traditions of the area, and make a wine that is a true reflection of its history and ecosystem. Diving at breakneck even losing money to extract from each vineyard the wine improved. Undertook this project with Paul Eguzkiza crazy, whom he met when both were studying oenology in Bordeaux in 1994, and has worked to open grave in Malaga, Rioja, Ribera, Rueda, Cebreros, Alicante and Galicia. It has become rich. There were times I could have left everything and have opted for the surf and contemporary art. The reason given time. And confirms that it was the first to make sure things could be done differently. And the result would necessarily be good for everyone. That land was the great wealth behind a bottle of wine. He has traveled around the world talking about Spain. Media, and outspoken extremist, ongoing reviews pouring in against industrial processes that were taking place in the wine industry to produce more at the expense of image quality and earned him the mid-nineties, the nickname "The fool of La Rioja" by some of his peers. At that time it was easier and more profitable to bet on the quantity than quality. After that romp, journalist COUNTRY Fidalgo Feliciano threw a cloak with an article entitled The smartest dumb La Rioja. Ningunearle Today nobody dares. Ascender with him alone into the vineyard The Falcoeira, who has worked in a decade and which has rebuilt walls of Roman origin, or The Beatas, a wild vine and lost in La Rioja, is the living example of the magic of wine Spanish which aims to develop and publicize. After traveling 3,000 miles by Spain in their search, the mad wine show that things are not what they were. We have taken a step forward. After kicking dozens of vineyards, one encounters situations that break the old clichés of our wines: a cava, Recaredo that surpasses in quality and price to the great champagnes, a Ribeiro, Emilio Rojo, rivaling the white Burgundies; a Rioja, Contador, more expensive than the best Bordeaux, a red wine from the Rias Baixas, the Goliardo, Rodrigo Mendez made in this land of white in tandem with Mrs. Lola, an octogenarian Salnés in Pontevedra, who does not want their vines disappear, a luxury winemaker, Joan Assens, who has renounced the Priory stardom and chosen to focus on its draft red small-large farm in the Montsant, under the brand Orto, a recuperator, Telmo Rodriguez, who has resurrected the reviled sweet wines of Malaga and dying Cebreros reds. A cooperative, Capçanes, in the county of Falset, under the direction of Francesc Blanch is making wines huge, unthinkable in other cooperatives, and giving a future worthy to 82 families. Or that kid from a small grocery store in the Barcelona purebred, Quim Vila, from that family business has grown to be the number one moving the most interesting Spanish wines in the world. This journey began in the Bierzo. Ends here. Maybe it's the example of all. A wine territory forgotten, discredited and famous for its wines and bulk nameless. But with different grapes and centenarians. In 1999 came to this land forgotten Alvaro Palacios, the greatest genius of the Priory, sought vineyards and lit the fuse. Behind his nephew Ricardo come with an ecology in the extreme. The poorly received. They had thrown the seed. The most restless of place would collect. For example, Raul Perez, who was born here in Valtuille de Abajo. While eating sausages and pie with his parents, uncles and cousins, tell us how the family made wine since the eighteenth century. And the horrors of the Civil War. In 2005, Raul made the leap to excellence. Penniless. No winery. In six years he has succeeded in producing unique wines, sometimes in runs of less than 1,000 bottles, which have fallen in love with international criticism, beginning with Robert Parker, the high priest. Today is the witch of Bierzo. And has expanded its reach to the Ribeira Sacra, Monterrei, Rias Baixas and also South Africa, Chile and Portugal, where it yields minimal. Among friends, for pleasure. For Raúl Pérez, time does not count. Know that wine is eternal.